Everlasting Bond : Pokemon
by CmSpivey11210
Summary: The story of a young boy named Xavier, and his best friend Casper! Read along and go on new adventures every week!
1. Chapter 1

Everlasting Bond

CS-BK

Intro

We just received a box in the mail, with my father's name on it. It's confusing because, 2 weeks ago we received a letter via air mail, concerning the death of my father. The letter was stunning. I was basically, emotionless. My mother however, not so much. She locked herself in her room, away from the "cruel outside world" (as she would describe it). It hurts now, especially to look back upon all of the good times my father have shared. He took care of me. He took care of anyone he could. He traveled around Sinnoh, doing many great and interesting things. He knew everyone from Twinleaf Town all the way to Sunyshore City. He was there for everyone…including the military. When the Great War broke out, my father was the first to volunteer as one of the defending soldiers. He left my mother and me behind with all of his belongings and money. One of the things he gave me that I will never let go of is a family photo of my mother, him, and me on our last vacation. The picture was taken about 5 years ago, right before he left. The people of Twinleaf threw my father a farewell party in his honor. We all thought he'd return a war hero. Instead…He didn't even return. I'm not going to lie when I say I feel a sense of abandonment. He promised me he'd be back, and he will never be able to fulfill that promise.

As for this box I just got in the mail, I'm kind of afraid to open it. Who knows what could be inside?! I haven't told anyone about the recent delivery, because I'm not too sure how my mother is going to react. If my father were here, I know he'd want me to take it upon myself and find the inner strength to open it. And open it I shall…one day.

The Box

It has been about 2 weeks since we've received the box. I've told my mother about it, and she is just afraid to open it as I am. But I feel as if it's high time someone does it. As I get closer to the box my mind starts to race about the possibilities that may lie inside. I picked up a small blade and cut through the tape, thus opening the box. To my surprise, I find a dusty tin case with badges that appear to be from Kanto, along with 5 Pokéballs, some weird looking _egg_, and a few documents. I haven't a clue what I'm supposed to do with any of this. All I know is this egg…its more than just an "egg". I know that sounds crazy, but there is just something about it. My mother is now reading through the documents. She keeps telling me it's "Not for kids", so I'm just going to shrug it off. She also grabbed the 5 Pokéballs, and the badges. She told me I should keep the egg. She also said if it were to hatch, the first thing I HAVE to do, is take the baby Pokémon to Professor Rowan.

Professor Rowan is the Pokémon expert of Sinnoh. His lab is in the next town over, called Sandgem Town. I've never been there, but I've heard it's pretty small. My mother said it's not too far either. So, I'm going to wait for my egg to hatch, but in the meantime, I'm determined to figure out what those Pokéballs contained. I'm pretty sure it's my father's wartime battle team, but I want to figure it out for sure. My mother just went to her bedroom to sulk again, so now is my chance to investigate. I have to search the house to the best of my ability. I will find those balls and I will find out what they have inside of them. As I creep down the hallway, I can hear my mother sobbing in the next room. I try to stay as quiet as possible as I approach the table in the living room. On top of the table, sits the box. I open it to find the 5 Pokéballs sitting atop of the "adult" documents. I reach into the box, grab the balls, and dart out the front door. In excitement I throw all 5 balls into the air screaming "GO, POKEMON!". The balls fly up and come crashing down just as fast.

I don't know how to react. I bend over and pick up the scattered Pokéballs, and assume they are empty. I put the balls in my pocket and entered my house. I walk quietly down the hall back to my bedroom, and lock the door behind me. I turn to see my egg sitting peacefully alone, on my bed. A sudden feeling of innocence runs through my body, and I put the egg in my hands. I hold it for a few minutes until I feel a small jolt. I jump back in surprise. I sit awake the whole night with my right hand on the egg waiting for just ONE more jolt. The jolt didn't come at all. Its 6:30 in the morning. I'm exhausted and dreary. I want sleep. I NEED SLEEP. I lay down on my bed with the egg next to me. My eyes begin to feel heavier and heavier. Then, they finally closed.


	2. Chapter 2

Everlasting Bond

CS-BK

The Pokémon and Friend

As I awaken in the bright, sunlit room, I turn over to check on the egg. I begin to panic, the egg is gone, and it's not there anymore. I rise out of bed in my half awake/sleep state and put my feet on the ground. Upon doing so, I heard a "CRUNCH!" I look down to find crushed remnants of my beloved egg. I break out in a cold sweat and scream at the top of my lungs. I drop to my knees in fear that I've just crushed the egg. I cover my face and begin to cry. That's when I hear a small, sudden cry "Riiiiiii!" I jump up to see nothing. I look under the bed to see two glowing red eyes in the darkness. I put my hand out to embrace the mysterious Pokémon. It touches my hand and emerges from the darkness. I grasp the paw and tug gently to reveal the cute little face of a newborn Riolu. Our eyes meet and I can tell we both feel the exact same connection. I pulled him out from under the bed, Riolu ran up my arm and onto my shoulder.

I rush down the stairs to see my mom, sitting at the coffee table drinking her morning tea. I yell "Hey mom, my egg hatched!" Mom stands up and looks at me for a minute, then drops her cup and it spills all over the floor. She freaks out any said "Where did you get it?" So I explain the whole thing to my mom. So she sits me down and explains that I need to head to the next town over to talk to Pokémon Professor Rowan, and then make my first step into my very own Pokémon adventure. So I head back up to my room, to gather my things. I check the box for things I would need on this adventure. I take the rusty old case and remove the badges; I put the badges in my Velcro pocket. I grab my old school bag and put the 5 Pokéballs in the front pocket. I look to the corner of the room, and ask Riolu if he's ready to go. He looks back and gives me an accepting nod. So we make our way back downstairs and we say goodbye to mom.

I walk up to Mom, who is now dramatically broken out in tears (because I'm leaving) and give her a huge hug. She kisses me on my forehead and tells me to be careful on my journey. With Riolu perched happily on my shoulder I make my way to the front door. Upon opening the door I see my best friend Casper running full speed towards my house. He stops just in front of my doorstep, exhausted and out of breath. Because of Casper's sudden arrival, Riolu jumps from my shoulder and hides behind my right leg. After catching his breath Casper yells out "You'll never believe what I just did!" I explain that I have to go talk to the Pokémon Professor. He agrees to explain on the way.

We start walking down route 201 to Sandgem Town, where the Pokémon professor is located. I ask him what he was so worked up about; he tells me "I was walking through Mt Cornet outside Oreburgh city, where my aunt lives. As I was wondering through the cave, I saw this lone Pokémon that looked all content. As I walked toward him he got startled and tried to tackle me. Luckily I noticed and moved out the way just in time. I took off my knapsack and as the Pokémon was stunned from hitting a rock wall, I grabbed him up and threw him in it." I am at a loss for words, so I just smile and laugh. He then took out his bag and I notice it's moving. So I say to him the best thing he could do is come with me to the Pokélab. We finally made it to Sandgem Town, and this town is not much bigger than Twinleaf. The town looks busy and there are so many different kinds of Pokémon here.

I walk up to this elderly looking man and ask him if he knows where the Pokélab is. He points out a large building with a grayish blue roof. Casper and I approach, and enter the building. To our surprise, it was empty.


	3. Chapter 3

Everlasting Bond

CS-BK

The Professor and Capture!

As we looked around the empty looking lab, an assistant came up to us and said "That the Professor left and is out in the field doing research." Casper asked "do you know where he might be?" "The professor did say something about, Lake Verity" the assistant said, scratching his head. We turned around in frustration, and started our journey toward route 201 again. This time, we have to head to Lake Verity. Casper found a sign, and it read "Route 201." I heard some Pokémon growling noises, so I motioned to Casper to follow me. I found this little clearing, were an elderly gentleman stood surrounded by wild Pokémon. I looked back at Casper and we nodded, we ran to the clearing to assist the old man. I yelled out to Riolu, and he jumped off my shoulder and stood ready. We did better than Casper… he sent out his Pokémon (from his book bag.) and it just tackled him to the ground. I looked back, and the wild Starly seemed ready to fight.

I commanded Riolu to prepare for battle. I shouted "Get ready, Riolu!" The wild Starly flew up high, into the air. Riolu watched this movement very closely. The Starly spread its wings and made a dive towards Riolu. Riolu saw what was coming before it happened. He did a front flip, right over the attack. The Starly then, jumped backwards in surprise. "USE TACKLE, RIOLU!" That's when Riolu began to charge at his attacker. On impact, the two duelers were on the ground. Starly got up, and began to peck at Riolu. That's when I told Riolu to "Use Pound!" He did as I said and knocked the wild Starly unconscious. Riolu returned to my side, slightly damaged. I picked him up off of the ground and placed him on my shoulder.

All the wild Pokémon that were around the elderly man ran off into the trees. I put out my hand and the elderly man took it and I helped him to his feet. As the elderly man was about to speak, Casper ran up with is recaptured Pokémon in his knapsack and began to yell. So I begged for him to be quiet, and he stopped talking. The elderly man stepped a little farther into the sunlight, and Casper grabbed my arm, and said "he's the Pokémon professor." I turned to look up and say something, but the elderly man spoke louder, saying "Follow me to my lab, no questions till we get there!" We calmed down a little bit, and followed him all the way back to Sandgem Town. We entered back into the Pokélab, the professor then yelled "Sit here, in these stools, I'll be right back." Casper and I took our seats, and waited for the professor to reenter the room.

The Professor returned with a silver box. He sat in on the desk that was sitting in front of us. He flicked open the two lock panels on the sides, and the lid opened. The box displayed 3 Pokéballs. He began to say, "These are the three starter Pokémon for the Sinnoh region. Meet Piplup, the water Pokémon! And then, we have the fire type, Chimchar! And last, but not least, the grass type Pokémon, Turtwig!" He was interrupted by, Casper yelling "WE ALREADY HAVE POKéMON!" I had to remind Casper to calm down, and that he was being WAY too excited. The Professor continued "Oh, I must have forgotten. I apologize. Well, now that I think about it…You did scare away those wild Pokémon, back on Route 201! I was curious as to how surprisingly quick they were gone. Well, anyways…For helping me out, I'll give you two a few things. This is a Pokédex, the creator of it, Professor Oak, wants me to give these out to help expand our studies. Here is one, for each of you. Xavier, I see you have 5 Pokéballs, but not one for your companion. Here take this Pokéball for your Riolu." I took the ball from his hand, and held it out to Riolu. He put his hands on top of mine, as I gently pressed the center of the ball, to his forehead.

Rowan looked over at Casper who was now wrestling with his knapsack, and offered him 6 Pokéballs. Casper then, accepts the Professor's generous offer. Casper opened up the bag, and a WILD Aron leapt from the inside, tackling into Casper's gut. Both of them fell backwards into Rowan's desk, knocking it over. The Aron fainted under the weight of Casper's body, slamming down on top of him. Casper stood up and picked out one of his Pokéballs. He then, threw the ball down onto the unconscious Aron. The ball bounced off and opened up. A red beam of light shot from within the center of the ball. The light beam took the shape of Aron. The red beam then, shrunk down to the original beam form, and returned to the ball, capturing Aron. The ball was shaking and glowing red for about, 5 minutes until the glow turned into a golden color. Riolu's ball was glowing the same color, instantly after I put it to his forehead.

Casper picked up the ball, and held it up in the air with pride. I apologized to the professor for the damage. That is when he told us about some "task". He said, "I feel as if you two are perfect subjects for our newest study. This won't be easy for you two, but it would be greatly appreciated if two were to accept. There are three legendary dragon type Pokémon hidden in the depths of Sinnoh. The first legendary I want to tell you about is, Palkia. Palkia has complete control over, the entire realm of space. The second legendary, is Dialga. This Pokémon controls time. Together, these two Pokémon work together, in order to keep the balance of Time and Space. And the third and final legendary dragon is Giritina. This Pokémon was created by the Pokémon Arceus, at the same time Palkia and Dialga were, but for a different purpose. He was to be the partner of Arceus. Giritina was meant to protect. But because of his behavior, Arceus banished him to another dimension."

Casper interrupted Rowan, by saying "What do you want us to accept already?!" Once again, I apologized for his rudeness. Rowan replied by saying "I want you two, to go on a journey, in order to get as much information as possible on all three of the Legendaries. The Pokédex will record any Pokémon you encounter. Of course, we already have entries for these legendaries, but science demands more. The Pokédex can only give us so much information, so we need to get more ourselves, by personal experience. I trust you two are right for the job! Would you be willing to complete this task for the glory of SIENCE?" That's when I asked "Wait, how are we supposed to find a Pokémon from another DIMENSION!?" Rowan replied, "You'll find out soon enough! Do you accept this task, or decline it?" Casper and I glanced and each other and nodded our heads. Rowan said "VERY WELL! I shall see you two in the morning! That is where your Pokémon journey will TRULY begin! Make sure to let your parents know what the plan is!"

We shook hands with the professor, and we walked off. We headed back towards route 201. As we were walking the path towards Twinleaf, my Pokéball flew from the carrying case and Riolu jumped out and hugged me. I put him down next to me and Riolu, Casper, and I made our way home. Casper went up to his house and shouted "I'll see you tomorrow, bright and early!" I walked inside to see the bottom floor of my house was empty. I thought to myself, "Mom must be out. I guess I'll see her in the morning." Riolu and I made our way up the stairs, and to my bedroom. I snuggled into bed and Riolu got comfortable by my feet, and we closed our eyes for the night.


	4. Chapter 4

Everlasting Bond

CS-BK

The Adventure Begins!

I was opening my eyes to the sight of Riolu, curled up right next to me. It brought a smile to my face. I sat up which disturbed him from his sleep, we both stretched our arms out, and got ready for the day and what awaits us. I ran down the stairs to find my mom washing dishes in the kitchen. She was surprised and said "When did you get home!?" I said "Last night… I guess you were out" "Yeah I was out last night, taking a walk to Lake Verity. It's nice this time of year." I answered "I guess I see, me and Casper are supposed to meet up with the professor and start our adventure!" Riolu jumped up with me in excitement. My mom laughed and said "Then go and start your adventure, make your dad proud!" I turned toward the door and opened it. Before I left I yelled "Bye mom, I love you!" then slammed the door shut. Mom just laughed and thought (just like his dad already). I was running down the path to Casper's house as I stumbled upon Casper's Aron tackling him to the ground. I ran over and Casper withdrew his Pokémon with a sad face. I asked him what's wrong; he answered "Aron won't stop tackling me." I just laughed and said "Maybe he just likes to battle." Casper laughed and yelled "But I'm not a Pokémon!" I chuckled and we just started our walk toward Route 201.

We walked down the path towards Lake Verity to check out how "nice it is". When we approached the water, we were stunned by the beautiful, morning sun reflecting off of the water. To our surprise, it was a sight we found truly beautiful. After enjoying our sights, Riolu, Casper, and I made our way back to route 201, on our way to Sandgem town. While walking through the tall grass along the path, we ran into another wild Starly. Riolu seemed overly excited about battling the wild Pokémon. The Starly itself seemed pretty pumped. After Riolu leapt from my shoulder to fight the wild Pokémon, when it finally hit me…This was the SAME Starly from before! I gave Riolu a command; "Riolu, use tackle!" He did as I said and lunged towards the Starly. The Pokémon spread open its wings and lifted itself off of the ground, over Riolu's head. After smashing into the ground, with a whimper, Riolu stood up and began growling. The Starly flew up high. In a torpedo like spiral, Starly dove towards Riolu. "Riolu, BLOCK IT!" I shouted. Riolu lifted his arms up to protect himself.

Riolu tried to block the Starly's attack, but it was coming down too fast, and it struck Riolu in the head and flew up high. I yelled for Riolu to get back up, and he jumped back toward me. The Starly seemed more determined to win, so I told Riolu to wait and stand guard. The Starly flew down from up above, aimed towards Riolu and, flew fast towards him. As it closed in, I told Riolu to jump and use pound. He jumped up successfully and then hit the Starly on the back. It crashed into the ground and fainted. I then grabbed one of my unused Pokéballs and tossed it out. The red beam covered the fainted Starly and absorbed it. The ball hit the ground and began to shake, it stopped and flashed gold. Riolu and I walked over and I picked it up. I looked at the ball in hand and said "Welcome to the team Starly." Riolu shook his head in agreement. I walked back to Casper who watched the whole thing. "Nice job, bro! That Starly looked tough!" I answered "Yeah but me and Riolu are an awesome team." Casper shook his head in agreement. We continued walking and reached the entrance of Sandgem Town.

When we got into the town, it seemed a lot bigger than I had expected. The first place we went to was the Pokémon Center. It was a building with a big red roof. We walked in and approached the counter. A really pretty nurse with beautiful pink hair approached us in an excited tone and said "Hello, and welcome to the Pokémon Center! We can restore your Pokémon to full health! My name is Nurse Joy! I work here with a team of 4 other nurses. We also have a few Pokémon who help us out. Meet, Chansey! These Pokémon have an extraordinary knack for healing other Pokémon. Would you like us to restore your Pokémon?" I nodded towards Riolu to go towards the nurse. Riolu leapt from my shoulder onto the counter, and I handed the nurse Starly's Pokéball. She grabbed Riolu by the hand and reassured him everything would be okay. She took my two Pokémon and went into the backroom of the Pokémon Center.

She came back out with my Riolu, and he jumped on to my shoulder. She returned my Pokéball and said "Your Pokémon are fully healed, enjoy your day." We went back out to the town, and found the Pokémon lab again. Rowan greeted us and I showed him the Pokéball with Starly inside. He said "Good job, Xavier." He took me and Casper outside; he pointed to the exit of town and said "This is where your Pokémon journey begins, boys." We both looked at him with reassuring faces. He told us to head to Jubilife City, then to Oreburgh to the first gym Leader. So we started walking out of town into Route 202, as we entered the Route a random trainer appeared and asked Casper to battle. Casper tried denying, but the other trainer was not listening and set out his Turtwig ready for battle. Casper threw out his Aron, instead of Aron getting ready for battle it turned on Casper and tackled him to the ground.

Before we knew it, the trainer told his Turtwig to "USE RAZOR LEAF!" The Turtwig did so, and swung his head, sending leaves from the stick on the top of its head, at a remarkable speed. Instead of hitting Aron, the attack landed on Casper. Casper flew backwards with a yelp. Aron got an angry expression on his face and began charging towards Turtwig. During his sprint, Aron's head began to form a shiny silver coating. Aron slammed his head into Turtwig's face, knocking it unconscious. The other trainer generously gave Casper $25.00 for winning the battle, and went on his way. We continued our walk to the next town. I was trying my best to keep out of the tall grass until I got some rest. I was already tired and it was only a little bit past noon.

Surprisingly we didn't run into anymore trainers or Pokémon. We entered Jubilife City and this City was much bigger than our home town, it was a beautiful City. There were tall buildings and lights everywhere. We went to the Pokémon center again to heal up our Pokémon and ask for a place to stay for the night. Nurse Joy graciously let us spend the night at the Pokémon Center, but it's still early so we decided to leave and go see the school. As we entered we came upon some young children learning about Pokémon. This one kid Lucas really loved playing with my Riolu, he thought he was a really cool looking Pokémon. He told me he wanted him, but I said "Sorry, I can't give him up. He's mine, and my dad gave him to me, this Riolu is special." Lucas got sad but he understood. So we decided to leave the school and head back to the Pokémon center to eat and rest up for the night.

I figured some stuff out at the school. Did you know, the "Psychic" type is said to have originated from the HUMAN brain. That is why Pokémon with this ability are weak against Dark types, Bug types, and Ghost types, because they are ALL human fears! I thought that was pretty cool! When we got back to the Pokémon Center, we went up some flights of stairs to our locked door. Casper, Riolu and I made our way towards our beds. Casper chose the bed to the left so, Riolu and I chose the bed on the right. I got comfortable, and pulled the sheets up to my chin. Riolu buried his way through the blankets to cuddle up next to me. I hugged him close and faded out.


	5. Chapter 5

Everlasting Bond

CS-BK

New Friends!

I opened my eyes to the bright sunlight coming in the windows, to my attention no one was in the room. I sat up and hustled to get my stuff together, I ran out the room and downstairs to the lobby of the Pokémon Center. I was heading out the front door when Nurse Joy yelled for my name. I turned and said "Yes, Nurse Joy?" "Your friend Casper -I think that is his name- took Riolu and Aron out for an early training not too long ago." "Do you know where they are?" I asked. She answered "Out back." I thanked Nurse Joy and headed out the entrance around to the back of the Pokémon Center. What I found was quite humors, Casper running around the alley away from his Aron. Who seems to keep trying to tackle him, I found Riolu sitting on a crate dying of laughter. Riolu noticed me and jumped up onto my shoulder.

Riolu looked awake and ready to practice. I assumed not too much "training" was done because Casper looked pretty worn out, almost as if he had been running around a lot. Riolu seemed startled and alarmed by a noise, we both clearly heard. I then called for Casper to follow me down the alley behind the Pokémon Center towards the Radio Tower, where the sound was heard. Riolu, Casper, Aron and I cautiously began to make our way down the alley. The whole way, Riolu and Aron were growling. Their growling slowly started becoming louder and louder. We tuned the dark corner to see a heavy set man, dressed in a clown outfit. "Hello! You've found me! If you answer my question correctly, I'll give you a Special Ticket!" That's when Casper jumped up and shouted "WHAT ABOUT ME!" He was then silenced by his Aron tackling him to the ground. The Clown let out a little chuckle and responded "You'll get your turn, young man."

"Okay sir what is your question?" I asked him. "I love to see a young guy with such determination." He said. "Here is your question, what type is most effective against the water type? Electric, fire, or ground?" He asked. I thought back to when we visited the trainer school earlier and remembered the weakness chart. I answered firmly with "Electric type Pokémon." The mysterious clown danced around and celebrated the right answer. He handed me a ticket and said "This is a Special Ticket, for a pokégear device. You can give this to the owner of the Radio Station in order to obtain the Pokégear." I graciously accepted the ticket, and then Casper got up off the ground and yelled "My turn!" The clown laughed and said "Okay, okay, calm down, young man." He then asked Casper "Which type is ghost not effected by, water, normal, or fire?" Casper yelled "Normal!" The clown celebrated again and handed Casper the same "Special Ticket". He said his goodbyes, and went on his way. We both high fived and celebrated our small victory. This celebration was cancelled by the sound of something splashing in a puddle and trash cans falling over. We (once again) went to go investigate the noises we heard.

We continued towards the Radio Station, where we heard the entire ruckus. To our surprise, we found a small, blue, mud fish looking Pokémon splashing about in a wide puddle. Casper hollered "I'm going to catch it!" He raised Aron's Pokéball into the air, and commanded Aron to help out. Aron lunged from the ball, into Casper's gut, and knocked him to the ground. While this was happening I reached into my pocket and pulled out my Pokédex. I held the device up to the Pokémon, and listened for details. I heard "Mudkip! The water type Pokémon! To alert it, the fin on its head senses the flow of water. It has the incredible strength to heft boulders aside." Casper stood up in frustration, and shouted "ARON, USE TACKLE ON THAT MUDKIP! NOT ME!" Aron turned his attention to Mudkip and charged at her. The wild Mudkip spit a vicious Aqua Jet move at Aron. This caused Aron to fly into Casper, which only got Aron pumped up. Aron began to charge again when Casper yelled out "USE HEADBUTT ATACK ARON!" Aron's head began to glow as it slammed into the Mudkip. Mudkip tried to stand its ground but it could only take so much. By the time it got to its feet, Casper demanded "FINISH IT WITH A TACKLE!"

The Mudkip saw Aron's attack coming so it used its tail to splash water in Aron's face. Aron was stunned for a second, but just became enraged. Casper than yelled "Let's do it! Aron use metal claw!" I never saw this move before, so I guess that Aron and Casper actually did some training together. Aron had this cocky look on his face, and its leg glowed with a shiny metal coating and he struck the Mudkip. This move knocked it out with its sheer force. Casper reached for his Pokéball and threw it at the fainted Mudkip. After a few seconds the ball stopped moving and glowed golden. He picked up the ball and him and Aron cheered in victory. I just folded my arms and smiled at their achievement. I then said "Let's move on to the Radio Station and get our pokégear watches." Casper returned Aron to his Pokéball and we started walking toward the biggest structure in the city.

We walked up to the two front doors and they slid apart. Riolu jumped from my shoulder and stood in awe at the outstanding size of the inside of the building. People were buzzing about, everywhere. All three of us (Riolu, Casper and I) made our way to the front counter, located next to an industrial sized elevator. As we approached a young lady, behind the counter said "Welcome to the Radio Tower! Are you here to retrieve your Pokégear?" I responded with a gentle head nod. She motioned for us to board the elevator. As we did so, we saw a burly man standing in front of the panel where we would select the floor we wanted to reach. The man said "Where can I take you boys, today?" Casper responded by saying "We want our Pokégear!" The man replied by saying "Ah! Very well! The top floor it is, then!" Riolu leapt onto my shoulders with his legs around my neck and let out an excited call. We stepped off the elevator, and walked onto the shiny, tiled floor.

A young lady walked up to us, she seemed really busy and asked "Are you guys here for the Pokégear watches?" I answered "Yes, we took a survey and have our tickets." Casper yelled "We came for the Pokégear!" The young lady laughed and smiled at Casper "Okay, let's go to the main office to get your pokégears." We followed her to the main office, during the whole time we were walking, Casper and the young lady seemed to be getting along. She pointed us to the bosses office door and said "good luck guys, see you later." Casper yelled "Goodbye, Amber!" She laughed and yelled back "Bye, Casper!" We entered the door and I asked Casper "Do you know her?" he answered "No we just met but, we got along." I hit him on the head and said "Okay man, let's get our pokégears." "I almost forgot about that." He said chuckling and holding his head in pain. We entered the room to a nice office with a strong looking older gentleman at his desk. We approached with caution, and I said "We're here for our pokégears."

The man's voice was deep, and scary. "Ah, I trust you both have your Special Tickets!" Casper replied "We sure do!" We handed the man our tickets and in exchange, he gave us our Pokégear watches. We smiled and thanked the old man. He said "Those watches will help you tell the time, communicating with other trainers, and even navigation! And for coming all this way, I have a piece of advice for both of you!" Casper stepped up to the desk and the man sternly said "You need to calm down, and pay attention to your surroundings. Jumping into thing too fast can lead to dramatic outcomes, and as for you, young man!" The elderly man tuned his head to face me, and said "You need to pay close attention to those close to you! They are your TRUE friends. Keep them around, and don't do anything to ruin your bond with them!" The man nodded towards the elevator and told us to be on our way.

We stepped into the elevator and pushed the button for the first floor, thinking about what that man said about us. I looked over at Casper who seemed disturbed about it. I asked him "What's wrong?" He said "I don't know, I guess I'm just thinking over the advice." He added "Also I never got to add that Amber girl into my Pokégear." I looked at him and said "You WILL meet her again, and don't worry about it, you're good the way you are." He looked up at me with a different expression on his face, and said "Thanks Xavier you're my best friend you know that, I wouldn't have went on this adventure with anyone else." I smiled and raised my fist and he knew what I was doing and raised his. Our hands collided and I said "Me to bro."

After getting off of the elevator, I noticed two beautiful girls! One girl had long flowing, neon green hair. The other girl had shoulder length blonde hair. That's when I noticed Casper's face light up in excitement! He ran up to the blonde girl and said "Hey! I never got your information in my Pokégear!" She looked at him and said "Here, take this!" She handed him a card with some information on it. Casper slid the card into the Pokégear and we all heard a pleasant "ding!" The girl then, introduced herself as Amber, and her sister with the flowing green hair, as Serena. I looked into Serena's eyes and felt a strange feeling in which, I've never felt before. I asked her if I could put her information into my Pokégear. She didn't say anything, but she put on the cutest smile, nodded, and handed me her card. I clicked it into my Pokégear and hear that iconic "ding!" That's when she grabbed my hand, and pulled me (and Riolu) out the front door at a sprint-like speed.


	6. Chapter 6

Everlasting Bond

CS-BK

Tag Battle!

Serena pulled me out of the Radio Station and down the sidewalk towards Route 203. She stopped running in a patch of tall grass. We stood there for a good, 5 minutes in complete silence. The whole time she had a mysterious smirk on her face. I finally looked at her and said "You know, it can be pretty dangerous if you stand in the tall grass, without a Pokémon." Riolu let out a giggle, and the smirk on her face disappeared and was replaced with an angry glare. She stood up straight, and turned around. That's when I noticed Casper and Amber, running down the path. "They want to battle us! They think they can win! Let's prove them wrong, Xavier!" Shouted Casper as the two approached us. "Wait, you girls are trainers?" I asked. The blonde girl nodded and happily said "Of course!" "Well then, LET'S BATTLE!" Casper yelled. Riolu jumped from my shoulder and got prepared to fight. But then I thought to myself "I haven't used Starly yet." I knelt down in front of Riolu and told him "Why don't you sit out this round? It's time for Starly to show me what he's got!"

Riolu let out a reassuring growl; he jumped back next to me. I took Starly's Pokéball off my belt and threw him out. After the beam of light faded, he spread his wings and let out a chirp. I looked over to Casper, he grabbed Mudkip's ball, and was about to throw him out until Aron came out on his own. Casper looked down in surprise and was tackled to the ground. I thought to myself (Aron must like battling with Casper.) Aron jumped off Casper and turned at the girls, ready to go. Amber and Serena smiled and shouted together "Cute, now how about our Pokémon!" Serena threw out an Ekans, which looked pretty cool, so I took out my Pokédex. After I got that Pokémon's information, Amber threw out a Gible. I had both of their Pokémon's information in my Pokédex now, then as I put it away Amber yelled "Ladies first!" Casper got angry then yelled "Aron use Tackle!" Aron agreed and charged toward Ekans. Serena smiled and said "Ekans dodge the attack and use bind." Ekans moved out of the way with no problem, and grabbed a hold of Aron. It squeezed tightly and Aron let out a growl. Casper looked at Aron with determination and kept cheering him on. Amber then yelled "Okay now, Gible use take down on Starly!"

"Starly fly up high and dodge the attack!" I shouted. Starly spread his wings and lifted off of the ground. "GO HIGHER STARLY! KEEP FLYING UP!" I yelled. "Quick Gible, use your water gun attack!" The Gible turned and water flew from his mouth at incredible speeds. The blast of water went right past Starly. "Starly, dive and hit Gible with an aerial ace!" I yelled. Starly shot down at a high speed towards Gible. "Gible, counter it with focus punch!" Gible's arm began to glow as he swung towards Starly. Starly flew, beak first right into Gible's glowing fist. A small burst of energy was released; knocking Starly into my arms, unconscious. "Oh Starly, you need rest. Get inside your Pokéball." I said as I put the ball to his head. The red beam of light encapsulated him and enclosed him inside of the Pokéball. "You did great, for your first battle, Starly!" That's when I heard Casper yell "NO ONE CAN DEFEAT MY ARON!" I turned to watch what was going on and I saw Aron standing on top of Ekans. I laughed and I asked "So, who wins?" Serena looked at me confused and said "Well, Casper and Amber have to battle now! The winner will decide which duo, are better trainers!

Casper looked determined to win this for our team, Aron jumped back to him and he yelled "Aron use headbutt!" Gible took the direct hit and fell. Amber said "Gible get up, you can do it." Gible stood back up really hurt and Aron didn't look to great. Amber then said "That's my Gible now use your focus punch one more time." Gible's arm lit up again and he charged. Aron looked back at Casper and Casper yelled "Aron use metal claw, and end this!" Aron's leg started to glow a shiny metal color and he charged at the Gible, head on. Each Pokémon hit directly and fell back. Amber looked worried at her Gible. Gible tried to stand up but fell down in pain, Aron on the other hand got up. He looked really battle damaged, but was still ready to fight. Casper then returned his Aron after congratulating him, as did Amber. We met in the middle of the field and Amber said "good games guys, you two are pretty strong." Serena said "we'll get you guys next time, you can count on it." We all laughed and returned to Jubilife City to heal up our Pokémon.

When we got to the Pokémon Center, Nurse Joy greeted us out side with surprise potions. Casper and I put ours in our bag while the girls used them on their Pokémon and took off. "We have to be going!" Serena shouted as they walked towards Route 202. "So long, you three I know we'll see each other again! " Amber shouted as she walked along the path with Serena. Riolu let out a bark and jumped up in the air. We all waved and turned around to face the entrance of the Pokémon Center. We walked in and saw another Nurse Joy at the desk. I was really confused. The pink hair, cute smile, and perky attitude all matched. I swear these nurses were the same people. Well, they seem to be. I found out they weren't when the nurse from outside came in. I made Riolu get inside of his ball, and I handed the two Pokéballs to the nurse. She took them and placed them on a large, round table. Lights began to flash with a pleasant tune. She lifted them off of the metal surface and handed them to me. I thanked her and returned Starly to my belt, then I told Riolu to come out of the Pokéball, and he did so.

Casper then went to heal his Pokémon; we said our goodbyes and walked out. We both then decided to continue our journey and head to the first gym leader. Roark and his Cranidos is one hard team to beat. I looked at Casper and asked "Doesn't your aunt live there, in Oreburgh City?" He yelled "Yes, she lives there, with her rock Pokémon!" he continued "I used to play with them all the time." I smiled and asked "You think Roark is going to be hard to beat?" He answered "No match for us! Let's go Xavier!" We continued down route 203, we came up on Oreburgh City at the end of the route. As we entered this City, I noticed it was next to a mountain. This place was pretty big and there was a lot of mining going on. Casper started running yelling "Follow me!" I ran after him and we ended up at this house. He explained "This is where my aunt lives, we can stay here the night and rest." I asked "Don't you think she will mind us staying here?" he answered "No, were fine she won't care."

I shrugged and said "Okay, well I'm whooped. Can we go to sleep?" Casper said "Yeah. Come on, let's go upstairs!" We made our way up the steps to a door on the left of a long hallway. We walked in and saw two twin sized beds. I jumped on the first one with Riolu and snuggled into it. Casper said "That's my bed…but I guess you can sleep there." Casper sat in the other bed and began snoring. I closed my eyes and tried to fall asleep. Something wasn't right though, I couldn't tell what it was. I lied in the bed with my eyes closed for a good two or three hours, until I was woken up by a sudden burst of heat. I smelt burning cloth and got startled. I sat up to see that my blanket was singed at the corner. I looked to my right, and on the floor sat a small orange lizard Pokémon. It startled me with a sudden call "CHARR!" Its tail had a medium sized flame on the end of it. I reached for my Pokédex. "Charmander is the fire type lizard Pokémon. If the flame on Charmander's tail burns out, the Pokémon will die." I shouted over to Casper "WAKE UP! THERE'S A WILD CHARMANDER IN YOUR ROOM!"

Casper jumped up out of bed, and reached for his Pokéballs, he threw out Mudkip and hit Charmander with a water gun. Charmander flew back and hit the wall, and then out of nowhere an older woman appeared. She started laughing and saying "Haha, Casper your home." I was confused and so was Casper. We didn't get what was so funny. The Charmander got back up and Riolu got ready too. The older woman stopped us and explained. She told us that the Charmander is a volunteer guard and it is wild. It wanted to help out because she rescued it from being jumped by other Pokémon. Casper returned his Mudkip and we walked with the lady to the kitchen. She offered to cook us a snack, when we got there she introduced herself as Casper's "Aunt Beth". We graciously accepted her offer and sat down at the table; I couldn't but help stare at the wild Charmander. It just seemed really cool to me and courageous. I wanted him so I got up and yelled "Charmander I challenge you to a battle in order for me to capture you."

The Charmander stood ready and prepared for battle. Riolu jumped from my shoulder and got ready. I commanded him to use tackle, and he did so. He tackled the Charmander to the ground. The wild guard Pokémon let out a small cry as it hit the floor. The Charmander stood up and a blaze of heat and hot embers shot from its mouth. The embers hit Riolu like a train, sending him to the ground with a whimper. "Come on Riolu! YOU GOT THIS!" I shouted. Riolu stood up and put one paw in the air. A blue aura came from nowhere and surrounded his paw. The glowing blue light formed the shape of a bone and Riolu charged at the Charmander. Riolu used the bone as a club and hit the Charmander with it, right in its face, thus sending it flying into the kitchen table. The Charmander tried its best to stand back up. It continuously fell back to the ground. I took a Pokéball from my belt and threw it at the Charmander. The ball hit the Pokémon and encapsulated it. The ball shook three times then began to shine the iconic golden color.

I grabbed the ball off the ground and put on my belt, Riolu was pretty hurt from that battle so Beth took him and healed him up real quick. She finished our meal and we ate the delicious food. We grabbed our things and headed out the door, as we left the house Casper said "I have to go, I'll meet up with you here after you challenge the gym leader." I looked at him confused and was about to speak, but he already ran away. I looked around and found this big building with a brown roof. I entered the building and looked for the gym leader Roark. I found him in the middle of the rock themed gym floor. I walked up to him and asked "Are you the gym leader? If you are, I'm here to challenge you." Roark smiled and said "You seem like you will be a great opponent, let's see then shall we?"

We took our places on the Battle Field. Riolu stood ready at my end (which was closest to the entrance of the building). On the other side of the gym, stood Roark backed by his Geodude. A man in a black and white striped shirt stood in the middle of the arena. He said "Ready to battle?! BEGIN!" "RIOLU, USE BONE RUSH!" Riolu knelt down with his paw in the air. The aura returned and formed the bone club. Riolu charged at the Geodude. The opponent lifted into the air dodging Riolu's attack. Roark yelled "Geodude, use slam on Riolu!" Roark yelled "Geodude, use slam on Riolu!" The Pokémon slammed down onto Riolu, crushing him into the ground. Riolu let out a cry and tried to stand up. He rose from the ground and lunged at Geodude. "Use force palm, Riolu!" I said.

The move hit the Geodude directly and stunned it. I yelled "Riolu use Bone Rush again!" the aura appeared in Riolu's hand and he struck the Geodude again. Roark's Geodude fainted. Roark then sent out his Onix, my Riolu stood tall. He commanded Onix to use rock smash, and it hit Riolu. Riolu fell to the ground; he struggled to stand back up. (Riolu might not be able to take another attack.) I told Riolu to stand and wait. Roark the told his Onix to use Iron Tail, Onix roared and slammed his tail on the ground. I told Riolu to dodge, which he did. Then I told him to run up the tail and use force palm. He struck the Onix on the head, I told him to grab on the horn with his legs. Then Roark told Onix to shake off Riolu off, but I told Riolu to use force palm over and over again. As Riolu struck Onix on the head the harder it was for it to stay up. It fell to the ground and fainted, so Riolu jumped away. Roark laughed and sent out his Cranidos.

Riolu looked at me with tired eyes. I said "You can do this, buddy!" He turned around and charged at Cranidos. The Cranidos swung his head back, and the slammed it forward; hitting Riolu. The counter sent Riolu flying backwards into a formation of rocks. Riolu was down for the count. I called him back into the Pokéball. That's when Charmander came in! "Charmander, use the flamethrower!" I shouted. Charmander's mouth opened wide and flames shot out, burning the Cranidos. Cranidos fell to the ground in pain! "USE TACKLE, CHARMANDER!" Charmander lunged at the Cranidos; slamming him to the ground. "NOW CHARMANDER, USE SCRATCH!" Charmander hit the Cranidos three times, knocking it unconscious. "YES! WE DEFEATED THE GYM LEADER!" I shouted with glee. Roark grinned and began to laugh.

Roark said "'You were a great opponent young trainer, I like battling with trainers like you." I said "It was a great experience my name is Xavier by the way." Roark continued "Okay, Xavier for defeating me you earned yourself the Coal badge." He handed me the shiny new badge and I put it in my father's badge case. I told him thank you and left the gym. I started on my way back to Beth's house to meet Casper when I found him riding on an Onix. I stood there and looked at the sight; I entered the house and Beth Healed my Pokémon for me. I went to the bedroom and flopped down on the bed to go to sleep.

When I woke up, Riolu was lying on the bed, looking better than ever. He opened his eyes and looked at me. We looked at each other for a minute but there was something wrong. Riolu wasn't happy like he usually is. He looked almost depressed. I asked Casper's aunt about it and she reminded me that when Pokémon lose battles, they sometimes feel bad because they're afraid their trainers will be upset with them. I knelt down in front of Riolu and said "Look buddy, just because you lost, doesn't mean I'm mad at you. We can't win every battle! Stuff happens, I love you Riolu" Riolu smiled and jumped up in the air to hug me around my neck. He let out a happy yip and jumped to the ground. I asked Casper about the Onix from last night. "Hey, whose Onix were you riding last night?" He replied "Oh that was my Aunt's. I've know Rocky since I was a baby. He and I have been friends for years! I smiled and said "Oh, that's cool. So…did you get the Coal Badge yet?"


	7. Chapter 7

Everlasting Bond

CS-BK

Followers!

At this point in time, both Casper and I both had the Coal Badge. We decided it was time to move onto the next city to continue our journey. After eating breakfast with Casper's aunt, we headed for Route 207. We followed path to the "Bike Path". When we got there, a patch of grass behind us began to rustle, and two Pokémon leapt from the vegetation, into the trees. Casper, Riolu, and I all noticed the mysterious Pokémon. We ignored it and continued on our way. We walked onto the path and got stopped by a girl with blue hair, in a police uniform. She said "I'm sorry, you three. You can't continue on this Bike Path without a bicycle. If you wish, you can take Route 206, which is directly beneath this bridge." "Oh, thanks Officer Jenny!" Casper yelled out. We made a right turn, down some steps, and onto Route 206. The path was lined by trees, with overgrown plants on the ground. As we walked in the shadow of the bridge, the two mysterious Pokémon watched us from the tops of the trees. This became evident when Riolu began barking at them.

Casper pointed toward some gleaming eyes in the direction Riolu barked. I looked over and noticed the eyes too. I reached for my Pokéball on my belt, till I noticed the eyes retreat back into the wilderness. I couldn't tell what they were but I feel like this is not the last time I'll see those eyes. We continued up the Route and reached our next destination, Eterna City. This city had a slight western feel to it, and I noticed a big building which was labeled "Eterna City, Bike Shop!" We decided we would check that store out after the gym leader battle. Instead we went to the Pokémon Center to get our Pokémon checked up. Nurse Joy took our Pokémon and took them to the back room to get checked up. We sat down in the lobby chairs and noticed two hooded people enter the Pokémon Center, and then they noticed we were looking at them and threw off the robes. They were wearing some grey and black uniforms. With a yellow "G" Nurse Joy came out of the room and was giving us our pokémon back when she noticed the two people standing there. Casper and I grabbed our pokemon and confronted the two uniformed people.

"Move you little runts! We have things to do and you're in our way." One of the men in black said to us. Casper yelled "NO ONE TALKS TO US LIKETHAT! LETS TAKE THIS OUTSIDE!" The men turned and walked out the door. We chased after them. I yelled "If it's a Pokémon battle you want, that's what you'll get!" The men threw their Pokéballs. Both contained a bat-like Pokémon. I held up my Pokédex to discover the Pokémon is known as Zubat. I called Riolu to come and stand tall. He jumped into battle and got prepared. I turned to Casper and said "A little help?" Casper ran over and screamed "GO MUDKIP!" Mudkip flew from her Pokéball and landed on her feet. "RIOLU, USE FORCE PALM!" I commanded, and Riolu did so. His paw began to glow a golden color as it flew through the air and into the Zubat's face. The Pokémon slammed into the ground, hard. Only to be hit again by Mudkip who used scratch. The other Zubat was commanded to use leech life on Riolu. When it did so, both Riolu and the enemy Zubat began to glow. A bright shining light moved from Riolu's body and into the Zubat's. Riolu yelped in pain, and fell to the ground.

The Zubat looked like it was getting stronger as the light continued to glow. Then Mudkip hit the Zubat with water gun. It hit the side of the building hard, and the uniformed guys returned there pokémon. They ran away down the path out of the city. While they were running, one of them shouted "THIS ISN'T THE LAST YOU'LL SEE OF TEAM GALACTIC!" Caser began to chase them, but I stopped him. I told him it's not worth our time right now. We turned around and entered the pokémon center again. Nurse Joy was so happy to see us again, she asked if we wanted a free night stay the Pokémon Center and we accepted it with no hesitation. We ate our food and healed our pokémon, got ready for a nice nights rest. After a nice long hour of sleep I woke up in the middle of the night to find Riolu looking out the window, looking at the moon. I got up and walked over to ask him what was wrong, he just stared up at the night sky. I began to tickle him and he barked excitedly. We wrestled around a bit and he just looked at me with this trustful look. So I grabbed him up and cuddled with him to sleep again and this time for the rest of the night.

I woke up around eight A.M. to Riolu barking at the window. I looked out to see what he was so excited about, and noticed that he wasn't gazing at the moon last night, but the two Pokémon. They were still there, except they were asleep on the roof of the Pokémon Center, which was visible from our window. I held my Pokédex up, to the now opened window. The Pokédex first said "Aipom, the monkey Pokémon. It uses its tail, more than its actual hands. Its tail can pick fruit, and help maneuver through trees." The Pokédex then said "Hoothoot, the baby owl Pokémon. It usually stays in trees with its families, and other wild Pokémon. It is quite the social Pokémon." I got excited and yelled "CASPER! WAKE UP!" He opened his eyes and said "What? Is everything okay?!" I shouted "Come look out the window!" He jumped out of bed and ran up to the window. When he saw the two Pokémon he recognized them and shouted "Those are the Pokémon I saw on Route 206!

As we were looking out the window Nurse Joy entered the room behind us. She entered telling us we need to check out for the day. We agreed and she went back to the hallway, we turned around and the Pokémon disappeared. Casper flung himself out the window, but I caught him by his shirt as he frantically searched for the two Pokémon. I pulled him back in and we got our gear together. We exited the Pokémon Center, with the bright morning sun shining down on us. Casper yelled "I'm heading to the forest to do some training, to fight the gym leader!" Before I could say anything he darted down the path with Aron chasing him. Riolu jumped up and growled at me. I looked down and Riolu seemed like he wanted to get stronger. So I picked him up and carried him off in a different direction. I figured I'd go do some training myself.

We took off to Route 211 towards Mt. Cornet. I started walking around in the tall grass so I could run into some wild Pokémon and train Riolu and Starly. We ran into a good amount of wild Pokémon and I noticed both of my Pokémon getting stronger, minute by minute. That's when I saw that Aipom from earlier. She appeared as if she wanted to battle, but before I could make a move, she ran away. Afternoon was coming and I was getting a little bit hungry. I headed back into town to grab a bite to eat for Riolu, Starly, and I. I walked into the town restaurant. That's when I ran into Casper. He had a huge plate of food while both his Pokémon were devouring two overflowing bowls of Pokémon food. I went up to the front counter and ordered two bowls of Pokémon food and a serving of macaroni n' cheese. I took the food back to the table Casper was at, and set the two bowls on the floor. Riolu began eating while I called Starly out of the Pokéball. Both Pokémon began eating next to Aron and Mudkip. I looked at Casper and said "So, about those Team Galactic guys…Do you know anything about them?"

Casper replied "I heard of them a few times from my aunt and Roark back at Oreburgh City." "My aunt told me that they are a group of people who want to start a new world with these two legendary Pokémon." I asked "What two pokémon?" He answered "Dialga and Palkia." I retorted "You mean the ones we learned about?" "What about Giritina?" I continued. He said "Little is known about that Pokémon, but it is a legendary Pokémon, for sure." "Okay I get it then we must stop them!" I said. Then as I said that Riolu jumped on the table with his belly stuffed and, barked in agreement. Casper stood up and yelled "Alright everyone, time to face the gym leader!" I looked at him and shook my head in agreement. So we all got our stuff together, and headed toward the gym.

We ran to the city and into the Eterna City Gym. We ran in to find that no one was there, but a man in a white suit. He said "The Gym leader is out right now. She should be back soon. You can go find him, if you really desire." All three of us turned out of the gym, disappointed. We went to the Pokémon Center and there stood Amber at the front counter. She ran up to us and shouted "HAII!" She hugged Casper and shook my hand with a cute little smile. I turned to see Serena walking into the Pokémon Center. Her face lit up and she began to blush a little bit. She walked up to me, and I gave her a long hug. I said "Sorry I haven't called you yet. We've been pretty busy." She smiled and replied "No need to apologize, I understand. Could you come to Eterna Forest with me? I don't want to go alone." I nodded my head in agreement and said to Casper. "I'll see you later, okay?" Serena, Riolu, and I headed out the door towards the forest. When we got there, Serena noticed the wild Aipom and Hoothoot watching me. I told her that they've been following Casper and I since we got to Eterna City.

Serena stood over by the tall grass and Hoothoot hopped out of the grass. Serena smiled and petted the Hoothoot on the head. I walked over to meet this Pokémon, but it got startled and ran away. Then a berry was thrown at my face. I fell to the ground with a smashed fruit dripping down my cheek. Serena walked up to me with a napkin and wiped the berry off my face. I smiled at her as she smiled at me, we just smiled and time felt like it stopped. She put the napkin away, helped me up and we continued our walk through the forest. We ran into a couple of wild Pokémon, we never ran into the Aipom either. I just felt like they were still watching us through the tree line. We ended up in the city called Floaroma, this city was so peaceful. We just basked in its beauty; we also noticed the huge windmills. The big windmills were next to a power plant. I thought we should go check it out, but the people told us it was closed down. So instead we decided to head back through the forest to Eterna City.

On our way back through the forest, I looked up and saw the Aipom hanging from a branch by her tail. I ran over only to be stopped by Serena grabbing my hand. She pulled me back and our eyes met. I've never been this close to a girl before. She bit her lip and said "Thanks for taking me through the forest. I really didn't want to walk it myself." I replied by saying "Anything, for someone as gorgeous as you." She grinned and moved in a little closer. My eyes grew wide, and I jumped back. "I'm sorry. I have to get back to Casper. He doesn't even know where we went. And your sister is probably worried too!" She looked at me and put her index finger to her lips and said "Shh." She moved her head forward and our lips met. My cheeks grew red and I smiled. "You know, that was my first kiss" I said. Serena replied "Mine too." Then she winked at me and took me by the hand. She pulled me the rest of the way through the forest and into the Pokémon Center, where we saw Casper, Amber, and a woman who looked quite similar to the two girls we've befriended. She had Orange hair but it was short, like Amber's. Her face somewhat resembled Serena's. She looked at us and said "I'm the Gym Leader, Gardenia. It's nice to make your acquaintance. My girls seem to have grown quite a liking to you two boys." Serena and Amber smiled and looked at each other. Riolu barked and broke the short lived silence. I looked down to see him scratching at the door of the Pokémon Center. When I looked outside, there stood Aipom and Hoothoot…Just watching us.


	8. Chapter 8

Everlasting Bond

CS-BK

The Rescue!

Casper and I faced these two mysterious Pokémon, we stared into each other's eyes and we knew they were the pokémon that were following us. We sent out Aron and Riolu, they seemed ready for battle. Before we could say anything Aron ran at Aipom using headbutt. The Aipom laughed and dodged the attack so Aron zoomed right past it. The Hoothoot used hypnosis Riolu and Hoothoot fell asleep, but then out of nowhere Aron came running toward the Hoothoot from behind. So the wild Pokémon turned its head around and dodged it. Before I knew it Aron ran into Riolu and they both seemed to hit the ground pretty hard. So I looked at Riolu who in fact, seemed very injured and then at the worried expression on Casper's face. So I yelled "Riolu use force palm on Aron!" Casper began to yell with a confused face on. Riolu looked even puzzled at the request, but he ran up to Aron and hit him with a half strengthen force palm. Aron seemed to become enraged and charged at Riolu, so I yelled "Riolu jump and get on Aron's back." Riolu jumped up and landed on Aron's back and began to ride on him. As Aron ran and since Riolu dodged Aron's attack he kept on going. He was heading straight for the Hoothoot and Aipom. As planned I had Aron run at the Hoothoot and have Riolu attack from the air. So Riolu jumped and landed on Aipom. I commanded him to use force palm repeatedly. At the same time Aron hit the Hoothoot with so much force it went flying.

I got excited and whipped a Pokéball from my belt at the wild Aipom. The ball bounced off of him and flew into the air. The encapsulating red beam retrieved the Aipom. The ball hit the ground and wiggled around twice. It flew open, and the Aipom flew from the inside. She reached out and picked Hoothoot up with her tail. The two Pokémon escaped out of the city towards the bike path. Casper yelled "They got away!" I replied by saying "I'm sure we'll see them again." Casper gave me an aggravated nod as he crossed his arms. We turned around to see the girls and Gardenia watching us from the doors of the Pokémon Center. Gardenia gave us a smiling glance, and said "You two boys seem very strong. I hope to be battling you soon. Stop by the gym ANYTIME!" She waved as she walked towards the building with the brown roof. When she was out of sight, Serena jumped on to my back and screamed in my ear "WHAT ARE YOU GUYS DOING TODAY?!" I turned around after she jumped off of me and said "Well, what is there to do here in Eterna City?" Amber popped up and excitedly said "We can go see the Legendary Memorial!" Casper jumped up and said "Wait…which legendary is it dedicated to?" Serena turned and said "Palkia! The water and dragon type legendary! "My eyes lit up and I immediately thought of Professor Rowan. I exclaimed "Well, when you guys want to go?" Riolu barked and Amber said "How about now?" Casper smiled and said "Sure, let's go!"

So we decided to take the walk over to the statue, it was very old and made up of this type of brown stone. There was so much dust and little bits of chipped rock. It looked cool for an ancient statue; it resembled the legendary Pokémon Palkia. It was very identical to the Pokédex picture of it, Casper walked up to it. He was basking in the statue's history, and reaching out to touch it until an old lady came out of nowhere, and hit him on the hand. He backed away as the old lady began to tell us about the two legends and their story. Casper on the other hand, kept interrupting the lady and getting hit on the head until he stopped. As she finished the story I began to spark up a nice little conversation about Arceus the god and creator of all Pokémon. She told me according to history he is the creator of all Pokémon. I thought this story was pretty interesting until I noticed Team Galactic entering a big blue building. I tapped Casper on the shoulder and pointed that direction. He noticed two cages with covers over them. So we told the lady we had to go and we left her. The girls stayed behind, as we ran toward the big blue building. When we got to the entrance two men stopped us from entering.

The man on the right hollered "If you want to get into the Galactic Headquarters, you have to defeat us." I reached for my Pokémon and Casper said "Fine, you want to battle? You got it!" I threw my Pokéball and Charmander flew from the inside. Casper threw his Pokéball up and out leapt Mudkip. The two men threw out a Zubat and a Skunk like Pokémon. I held up my Pokédex to find out that this Pokémon has extremely toxic gas in which can be released at any second and its name was Stunky. "Charmander, use tackle on Stunky, but be careful!" He charged at Stunky as Casper yelled out "Mudkip, use water gun!" Mudkip spread his legs and water shot from his mouth. The water flew up and hit Zubat with brute force. Charmander slammed into Stunky causing it to fly into the Galactic Headquarters. The Zubat flew towards Mudkip and one of the Galactic Grunts screamed "ZUBAT USE BITE!" The Zubat chomped down onto Mudkip's leg. Mudkip fell to the ground and began twitching. "Charmander quick, use your ember attack on the Stunky!" I yelled. The hot embers shot from Charmander's mouth burning the Stunky. The Stunky's fur began to catch flame, knocking Stunky unconscious, due to serious burns. Mudkip stood up and Casper commanded him to use tackle. Mudkip jumped up and hit the Zubat in the face, sending it to the ground. The Zubat was no longer able to battle.

The Team Galactic grunts seemed disappointed not being able to win. We ventured forward further into the headquarters. Galactic grunts were everywhere, so we hid and crept around avoiding detection. Casper almost got us caught when we found the cages in the storage room, but luckily I stopped him from shouting. They uncovered the cages and we noticed two familiar Pokémon. The Hoothoot and Aipom from earlier were inside those cages and badly injured. Casper and I got really frustrated watching the Grunts laugh and chat, while there were two, badly injured pokémon that needed help, right there. So we decided to take action, Casper threw out Aron and he seemed still injured from our last battle. Casper kneeled down and told Aron "Hey, buddy we need you to knock this crate down and distract the guards." Aron looked at Casper and into his eyes and nodded in agreement. So we crouched and hid behind crates across the room and gave Aron the signal. He used headbutt on the crates and the boxes. The boxes and crates fell on top of the unsuspecting grunts. While they were trapped I ran to free Aipom and Hoothoot. Casper ran to get Aron, so I sent out Riolu and had him use force palm on the cage bars. They broke and I picked up the injured Pokémon. Casper ran up to me and said "We need to go, let's take that exit door." I looked and behind us was a bright red sight that said exit. We opened the door and locked it behind us. As soon as it was locked we could hear the voices of the grunts we smashed.

"Where'd those two hooligans run off to?" We heard from the other room. I looked at Casper and said "We need to get to nurse Joy!" He nodded and we ran through the narrow hallway out the door, and down the path. We got to the Pokémon on the examination table. Nurse Joy's expression was stressed. She reached for a stethoscope and said "What on earth happened?" We explained how we saw Team Galactic carrying the cages and how we found them injured and took them from Team Galactic. She said "They don't look too good. Chansey, take these two patients to ICU as soon as possible! As for you boys, why don't you head upstairs for some rest? It may be awhile before we know exactly what is going on with Aipom and Hoothoot." Casper yelled "I DON'T NEED REST! I'm here to make sure these Pokémon are going to be okay!" I agreed and Nurse Joy took us through the same doors Chansey took the two injured Pokémon. We walked down a long, white hallway. We turned at a door that said Room 15. I saw Aipom being bandaged up and getting shots in some of his open wounds, so the … yes, TWO Nurse Joys could stitch them up painlessly. Casper ran over to Hoothoot and began to pet his forehead. The Nurse Joy, who brought us into the room, said "See, they're in good hands! Please, go get some sleep. You two deserve it." I looked at Riolu who let out a little yawn and I nodded at Nurse Joy.

We went upstairs and found a room with two beds in it we fell asleep as soon as our heads hit the pillows. We awoke the next morning to Hoothoot and Aipom standing over us. Nurse joy was there and told us that they are back to full strength again, but something was different about these two. They seemed like they wanted to battle, so we smiled and took them outside. As soon as we exited the Pokémon Center they were ready for us. So we sent out the two musketeers, Riolu and Aron they seemed ready to go as well. Casper yelled "Alright Hoothoot get ready to be mine!" Then he commanded "Aron use Headbutt on Hoothoot." Aron ran toward the Hoothoot and hit it. The pokémon didn't seem to move. It was suspicious, so I told Riolu to tackle Aipom and the same thing happened. Aipom didn't seem to move either and the two just lay there, then finally Casper and I understood what they were doing. We grabbed a Pokéball off out belts and threw them at the Pokémon. The red beams engulfed the two Pokémon and the Pokéballs shook three times and they were each caught. Casper picked up his Pokéball and so did I. Then out of surprise Casper's Pokéball opened and Hoothoot came out. He landed on Casper's bag and just tilted its head to the side.

I held my Pokéball up with pride and exclaimed "I caught an Aipom!" Aipom leapt from the Pokéball with a happy squeal and jumped on my shoulder opposite of Riolu. They both smiled and I began laughing. We turned around to see Amber and Serena running towards the Pokémon Center, quite frantically. Serena ran up and hugged me. To my surprise, both girls were in tears. I began to panic. "What is going on? Are you girls okay?" Caper hugged Amber while I hugged Serena. The girls gained momentary control and slowly began talking. Serena said "Our mother was taken." Then she began to whimper and cry. Amber continued "It was Team Galactic! They took her and Turtwig! They were just playing music back at the gym and…and…" She began to sob as Serena came back around. Serena followed up with "They threw a sack over her head and they scooped Turtwig up in a big net. They then took off out the door before we had a chance to stop them." I looked at Casper, and we both knew what we had to do.


	9. Chapter 9

Everlasting Bond

CS-BK

The Rescue! Pt. 2

With both girls in tears, Casper, Riolu and I took off for the Galactic Headquarters. With Riolu by my side, both Casper and I burst into the front door. We looked up to see the Lobby was empty. I looked at Casper and nodded towards the elevator. I pointed up and then told him to check the two top floors while I search the basement. Riolu and I ran for the steps in the far left corner of the lobby. The elevator doors closed shortly after Riolu and I ran down the stairs. When I got to the basement I found that all the lights were off. I walked forward onto a pressure plate. A light flashed on and lit up a small area around Riolu and me. I turned to see a Galactic Grunt standing ready for battle. "So, you've found us. If you're looking for the gym leader, I suppose you've came the right place. But, before you even come close to saving her, you have to go through me, Galactic Grunt Geoff!" said the grunt. I nodded and reached for one of the Pokéballs on my belt. I held it up and threw it into the air. "Let's go, Charmander!" Charmander leapt from the Pokéball and prepared to battle. The Grunt called out his cat like Pokémon. I pulled out my Pokédex to figure out what it was. The Pokédex said "Meowth, the good luck Pokémon. The gem on its forehead is told to bring luck and fortune to those who possess it." Charmander, use your scratch-attack!" Charmander's claws began to glow. Charmander charged toward the Meowth. He cocked his arm back and swung it, full force at Meowth. The Meowth had much longer claws, which blocked Charmander's attack.

The Galactic Grunt yelled "Meowth use Slash!" Charmander got pushed back, by the Meowth using slash. Charmander recovered himself and tried to retaliate, but the Meowth used Headbutt. He struck Charmander in the head and he fell onto his back. I yelled for Charmander to get back up and he did. He stood back up and growled to be ready to go again. So I commanded "Charmander use ember." The Meowth was burned by the hot Embers from Charmander's mouth. The Meowth was stunned and seemed to be burned. So I yelled for Charmander to use tackle, he struck the Meowth this time and it didn't get back up. The Galactic Grunt just grunted in frustration and returned his pokémon. I ran right past him, and continued to move throughout the basement in search for Gardenia. I ended up not finding much except a warehouse full of boxes and supplies. So I made my way back up to the lobby. I found a way to make it to the next floor and found Casper and his pokémon getting injured. He was clearly losing; he was facing at least two Grunts. I ran up and told Riolu to get ready, He ran straight up too Aron and assisted him in battle. I told him to use Force palm on the Grunt's pokémon, clearly knocking it out. Casper then yelled to me "Xavier, where have you been?" I answered "I have been searching for Gardenia." He then yelled "I found her she's in that back room, but first we need to finish off these guys." Then after he said that two more Galactic Grunts showed up, ready to battle. I grabbed another Pokéball off my belt and got ready.

I lifted the ball into the air and shouted "Starly, I chose you! Starly flew out from inside the ball. I said Starly, use wing attack! He flew up high and his wings began to glow. Starly dove downward towards the mysterious Pokémon. The wing sliced the body of the Grunt's Pokémon, forcing it into the ground. "Starly, fly up high before that Pokémon stands back up!" As Starly flew upward, Casper and the other Grunt were going at it. Hoothoot was doing pretty good. The other Grunt's Zubat seemed pretty injured. I turned my attention back to my own battle only to find out I wasn't paying attention to Starly. Who, in fact seemed to be pretty distracted by a light fixture. I began to laugh as I told Starly to use peck on the other Pokémon. Starly dove down towards the Galactic Pokémon, impacting it with her beak, once again knocking it to the ground. I turned to see Casper, excited because he won his battle against the other Grunt. We both looked over to see the Galactic Grunt I was battling, kick his Pokémon. "YOU'RE USELESS, WEAK, AND GOOD FOR NOTHING!" hollered the Galactic Grunt. "HEY! DON'T TALK TO A DEFENSLESS POKEMON, THAT WAY!" I shouted. Casper stood closer and shouted "YEAH! Look at how much smaller he is compared to you! It really isn't fair to hurt him like that!" Casper walked up and took the Pokémon from the ground. The Galactic Grunt said "I don't have room for such a weak Pokémon on my team. Take him, if you want. I was planning on leaving him in the forest tomorrow, anyway." Casper shouted "I will take him! I'll raise him and show you how powerful he really is!" I nodded in agreement and said "People like Team Galactic make me sick." The two Grunts smiled and took off together.

Casper picked up the very injured Pokémon, and picked the ball up from the ground. We entered the back room. We found Gardenia in a chair tied with a note stuck to the back of it. I ran up and picked up the note and it read "Haha it was nice to see your strength boys, have fun with your precious gym leader. See you again soon. Love, Mars." I untied Gardenia and we exited all together. I was finally glad to have left that dark basement. Casper walked faster than us to get to the Pokémon Center. When we got there Gardenia ran up to the girls and hugged them while Casper ran to Nurse Joy. She took him to the back room and he had to wait outside. He looked so nervous to me, it scared me. I walked up to him and told him "Come on, everything will be okay. Let's get some rest." We left the rest of our Pokémon with Nurse Joy and went upstairs, and went to get some rest. We went to sleep for the night and awoke to this new mysterious Pokémon on Casper's bed. He was feeding it Pokéfood, it seemed really happy. I pulled up my Pokédex, and it said "Larvitar the ground Pokémon, it is born deep underground. It can't emerge until it has entirely consumed the soil around it." I rubbed my eyes and looked closer and noticed it was the same pokémon that the Grunt wanted to get rid of. I said barely awake "Hey look who's finally awake! Hi there, little guy." I raised my arm and the Larvitar moved out of the way. I felt sad and confused, and then Casper said "We need to take it slow with this one." I looked at him and said "Okay, I understand." Larvitar then began to eat again; it then smiled at Casper and happily ate the food.

I let out a giggle, and turned to see all 5 of my Pokéballs sitting on my nightstand. Riolu was curled up in a ball at the foot of my bed, fast asleep. I called out all of my Pokémon and shook Riolu awake. Riolu stretched with a tired growl and then jumped up happily. I put some Pokéfood down for all of our friends to enjoy a bite to eat. Casper sent out all of his Pokémon so they can eat, too. All of the Pokémon ate their food with happy faces, but two were missing. "Where is Aipom and Hoothoot?" I asked. Casper began to search around the room. I looked under my bed to see the two Pokémon hiding together, while sharing food. I reached my hand out, and Aipom grabbed it with his tail. Unexpectedly, he yanked me to the ground and pulled me under the bed. Hoothoot came up to me and popped a food pellet into my mouth. I closed my eyes as I slid from underneath the bed. I looked at Casper and spit out the pellet. "I found them." I grumpily muttered. Casper said "Why are they under there?" Nurse Joy interrupted by saying "Excuse me boys, you have a visitor." She turned and walked down the hallway. Gardenia stood in her place and said "Well boys, I owe you big time for all that help with Team Galactic. I'm looking forward to seeing you two at the gym sometime soon." I smiled as I nodded my head "You will see me a lot sooner than you think!"I shouted. She laughed and said "Good, I'll be waiting at the gym!" She turned and made her exit. I looked over to see Charmander and Starly happily playing with Larvitar and Mudkip. I looked at Casper and said "It looks like we have some preparation to take care of." Casper nodded and said "I'll meet you back here around sundown. I want to work with Larvitar for a while." I smiled and called all my Pokémon (except Riolu) back into their Pokéballs. I made my way through the Pokémon center, and out the front door. That's where I was nearly tackled by Serena. She gave me a huge hug and exclaimed "Thank you so much for saving my mother! How could I ever repay you?" I looked at her with a smile and said "Come help me train my Pokémon!"

We began walking towards Eterna Forest when it started to slightly rain. We ran until we found a dry spot under some trees. I turned to Serena who smiled and said "It's a good day for training some fire types!" I looked at her as if she was crazy and responded by saying "The rain could kill them!" She giggled and said "Not a drizzle, like this!" I nodded and shouted for Charmander to come out. He flew from his Pokéball ready to battle. Serena stood for a second as if she was thinking about what to say. She blurted out "If anything, the rain should make them stronger against water type moves!" Charmander seemed very uncomfortable with the small drops of water falling through the tree tops. Serena pulled out a Pokéball and said "Whooper, I chose you!" A blue Pokémon flew from her ball and stood up curiously. I pulled out my Pokédex. "Whooper, the salamander Pokémon. When walking on land, it covers itself in a poisonous film to protect itself." I shouted "Hey, a water type versus a fire type, isn't really fair. Serena nodded and said "I know, but if you want to train your Pokémon, you have to challenge them!" I let out a huff and said "Charmander, use tackle on Whooper!" Charmander charged Whooper, wrapped his arms around its body, and jumped back in pain. I thought to myself "The poison film must be stopping direct hits." I then told Charmander to fall back and use ember. Charmander jumped back and hot embers shot from his mouth pelting Whooper, who didn't seem too affected.

"Whooper, use bubblebeam on Charmander!" Serena shouted. Bubbles shot from Whooper's mouth at an incredible speed. They exploded into bursts of water when they made impact on Charmander's body. Charmander let out a whimper before I yelled "YOU GOT THIS, CHARMANDER! YOU CAN DO IT! I BELIEVE IN YOU!" Charmander's eyes began to glow orange. He stood up and I said "NOW CHARMANDER, USE FLAMETHROWER!" Charmander tilted his head back and flames shot from his mouth, engulfing Whooper. Whooper's skin turned red, as it fell to the ground knocked out. I called for Charmander to return to his Pokéball while I congratulated him. Serena looked at me and said "You have power, Xavier. You can do great things, I can feel it." I smiled and hugged her. She called for Whooper to return. We began walking back to the Pokémon Center when a wild Jigglypuff began to sing. I turned and all I could see was a pink ball. Then I blacked out. I don't remember much, except for Serena catching it.

"OH MY GOD! LOOK AT HOW CUTE SHE IS!" I heard Serena yell. Throughout my dizziness I made out small parts of the battle, and Jigglypuff being captures. I was awaked by an abrupt kick in the ribs by Serena. "Hurry up; we need to get to the Pokémon Center." She said. She helped me up and we began to sprint for the building with the iconic red roof. When we got there Casper was at the counter with Amber. The two girls went to the backroom and Casper and I began to talk. "Larvitar is getting stronger and stronger!" Casper said happily. I smiled and said "So is Charmander. You know, we make a good team…us and our Pokémon. We all seem to be getting along just fine." Casper nodded and jumped into the air shouting "I'm going to get the Forest badge before you!" He then bolted out the front door of the Pokémon center. I shook my head with a laugh when I looked up to see a woman with shoulder length red hair come from upstairs and rush out the door. I shrugged it off and made my way to our room with Riolu. We both fell asleep pretty quickly. I woke up to Casper holding his badge in my face and him saying "I TOLD YOU!"


End file.
